


Fade Away

by fallingsnow6136



Category: Digimon - All Media Types, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Adventure Zero Two | Digimon Adventure 02
Genre: Betrayal, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Dark, Destroyed Digital World, F/M, Gatomon turns dark, Gen, Gennai Is A Traitor, Kidnapping, Non-Graphic Violence, Non-Sexual Slavery, Rise from the Ashes, Slavery, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:40:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26658319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallingsnow6136/pseuds/fallingsnow6136
Summary: When the crests lose the light that once made them shine the strongest, what does it mean for the Chosen Children? As they enter a world that is completely different to the digital world they once knew, will the bonds they share be enough to win this battle?
Relationships: Both Adventure teams, Chosen Children | DigiDestined & Digimon Partners, Evil Original Character - Relationship, Ichijouji Ken/Inoue Miyako | Yolei Inoue, Imperialdramon & Daisuke & Ken, Ishida Yamato | Matt Ishida & Yagami Taichi | Tai Kamiya, Ishida Yamato | Matt Ishida/Takenouchi Sora, Motomiya Daisuke | Davis Motomiya/Yagami Hikari | Kari Kamiya, Omegamon & Taichi & Yamato, Tachikawa Mimi/Yagami Taichi | Tai Kamiya
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	1. Withering

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, so okay admittedly I have never posted an Adventure-verse story here on AO3. I am unsure of what the digimon community here is like despite having a few friends here, so this is really my first venture, so hello to my Digi-friends over on AO3, here is a lovely story for all of you. Thanks to Crystal_leris for betareading this chapter for me.

**1\. Withering**

A lot can change in seven years. Friends can drift apart, especially in today’s day and age. The original team, including T.K. and Kari remained in Japan. Davis, Ken and Cody have moved to New York in pursuit of their own careers whilst Yolei had moved to Spain for further studies. Despite the distance, the team has remained closer than ever.

The Digimon had returned to the digital world and for a few years, the Chosen Children had kept in touch, visiting the digital world or when they couldn’t – the Digimon would come to spend some time in the real world. It was also a good way to visit each other whilst being in different countries through a digital gate despite the fact that they all spoke on the phone or video-called at least once every week. 

However, this was not to last. The gates closed suddenly and no matter what Izzy tried, they would not open up. It had been four years since then and though no one spoke about it, not having the Digimon with them anymore was definitely a sore point for all of them. 

Currently, Tai Kamiya was sitting in the cafeteria of his university with some of his classmates who were all talking about their future. He would have joined in but without Agumon, there didn’t seem to be a point in it. It was odd – a couple of months ago, everything had been so different. It was almost like he had a goal to work towards.

_“You want to study to do what?” Matt had asked him, staring at him as if he had grown two heads._

_“International Relations!” Tai said simply. “I want to try and find a way where humans and Digimon can live together in peace, so I feel like I’d need to go into politics for that first.”_

_“If you want to create a world like that, wouldn’t it better to be go into research?” Izzy asked with a small frown. “So, you could understand what the world needs to be able to understand Digimon better than they do right now?”_

_“I feel like if I can get into a good position in the Japanese government, I can become a diplomat and bring humans and Digimon together,” Tai said enthusiastically, pumping a fist. “I mean, wouldn’t it be amazing if people actually understood that yeah there were bad Digimon who tried to destroy the world, but most of them are not like that, you know?”_

_Sora smiled softly. “I think you can do anything you set your mind to, Tai. I know how determined you can be, so go on and try. Besides, that is a good goal.”_

_Agumon smiled. “Yeah, I know Tai can definitely do that no matter what happens. Hold onto your courage and don’t let anything stop you, ok Tai?”_

_Tai beamed at his partner. “Of course! As long as I have you, Agumon, I can get anything I want done.”_

Somehow, those words could not have been truer, especially now because more than anything else in the world because now that he didn’t have Agumon anymore, nothing seemed as easy. He would struggle to make his assignments on time and have to constantly ask for extensions. This was adding into the fact that he no longer lived with his parents, so he had all the privacy and his own routine. But without Agumon, was there any point in trying when there was no certainty that he’d ever see his best friend again? _It’s not like me to be such a pessimist, I’m taking Matt’s job._ The light joke did not bring any humour as his fist clenched, thinking about everything. They still didn’t know why the gates had closed.

“Tai! Tai!” His classmate Mao waved a hand in front of his face and he snapped out of it, blinking.

“Yeah, what is it?” Tai asked.

“There’s smoke coming out of your bag,” Mao said, her blue eyes watching him in concern. Tai stared at her for a moment before looking to his bag and his eyes widened, quickly scurrying and pulling out all his books. He didn’t realise what was burning so he scattered his books across the floor but what he saw made his heart drop into his stomach. 

Amidst the mess lay the Crest of Courage. The light of it was completely faded but more than that, it was like someone had thrown it into a furnace because it was a charcoal colour, smoke coming out of it.

“What is that?” Tai’s other classmate Ryoko asked him but he couldn’t reply to either of them and quickly shoved all his books back in his bag, trying to grab a hold of his Crest but let out a cry as it burnt his hand.

“Tai, be careful,” Mao scolded him. “That thing whatever it is, is burned badly, you should throw it away.”

Tai shook his head. “I can’t. It’s important to me. Guys, can you cover for me? There’s somewhere important I have to take this somehow. I’m sorry, I know skipping classes isn’t good for me right now.” He knew he was talking fast so it would be a surprise if the others even understood what he was saying right now. He didn’t know how to calm down though, even now, being 21 years old. Agumon’s face shifted in the back of his mind and he pushed that down. He couldn’t overthink it. He needed to get his Crest to Izzy and ask him what had happened. His friend would know. His friend always had the answers no matter what.

“Dude, you can’t actually be thinking of carrying that burnt hunk of metal out of here, can you?” Ryoko said, raising an incredulous eyebrow at him.

“I don’t care if I burn my hand,” Tai said, knowing it was impulsive of him to do so. He wasn’t a child anymore but Agumon came before anything else.

“Idiot,” Mao said, shaking her head and Tai had to admit she freakishly sounded a lot like Sora when she said that especially with that expression. “You don’t have to be so stupid about this. We can cover for you but here.” She took out a spare paper shopping bag and handed it to him. “Scoop up the metallic thing in this and then go wherever you like. I’ll send you the notes.”

Tai smiled now but did as she said. “Thanks, Mao. And you too, Ryoko, thanks.” The Crest was lightly burning the bag but hopefully, he’d have it to Izzy before it completely wore a hole in the bag, right? He hurried out of there, deciding to call Izzy to see if the other could meet him just in case he didn’t make it before the bag was completely destroyed. Luckily, his friend picked up within a few rings.

“Tai, is everything ok?” Izzy’s voice did sound a little puzzled. “I mean, I have a day off, but you have University today, don’t you?”

“Izzy, I’m headed to your place right now, but I might not make it there in time,” Tai was speaking in a rush again because the smell of smoke was beginning to get to him.

“Tai, calm down,” Izzy cut through him before he could continue. “What is happening exactly?”

Tai exhaled, trying to breathe and calm down. “It’s my Crest. It’s faded away but more than that, it’s like somebody lit a fire over it or something because it’s burning. Why would that happen?” Him losing the motivation to make his dreams come true surely wasn’t enough to make his Crest go haywire, was it?

Izzy was quiet for a few minutes before he finally spoke again. “Can you bring your Crest to me so I can examine it and try to figure out what’s wrong? Our Crests represent the innate feelings in our hearts.”

“I’m trying,” Tai said, a trace of irritation coming into his tone. “But I’ve put the Crest into a paper bag, and I’m worried it won’t last till I get to your place, so I dunno, can I share my location with you, and you can meet me halfway or something?”

“Of course,” Izzy replied immediately, and shuffling could be heard on the other end of the line. “I’ll bring out my own Crest too…oh no.” There was silence on the other hand, which did not help with Tai’s already rising panic. 

“Izzy, you can’t just say ‘oh no’ when I’m already freaked out,” Tai snapped slightly, causing people to turn and stare but he ignored them, focusing on the phone call as his grip around the object tightened. “What happened?”

“Tai, my crest has faded away too, it’s completely dull and while it’s not burning or blowing smoke, it also doesn’t have the same shine that it usually does,” Izzy said frowning. “Stay where you are, I’m calling an emergency meeting and even though everyone may not be able to come, since not all of us are in the country. Share your location with me and I’ll find something to wrap your crest in, then we’ll come back to my house. We’ll take the younger Chosen on video call if we have to, because having as much of the Chosen present here is necessary.”

Tai nodded. “Okay, yeah, you’re right. I’ll get off the phone and do that.” Somehow, the fact that the other Chosen Children were being gathered made his heart stop racing even despite the fact that it meant something big might be on the horizon. “See you soon, Izzy.” He hung up, sharing his location, thoughts drifting to Agumon again. _Agumon, whatever’s going on, just hang in there, ok?_

* * *

Since she had woken up, Kari had felt her heart sink in dread as if something terrible was on the horizon. She rubbed her eyes, having not had the best night and if Tai still lived here, then she might have talked to him to lighten her own mind. A part of her debated calling T.K. but he might be busy with his novel although he wouldn’t mind if she called him. Before she could debate on whether to make the call or not, her phone rang.

Her lips quirked into a smile as she realised Davis was calling her. Did he ever sleep? He sometimes called her at the oddest hours when it was likely 3 in the morning over there, not that she minded of course. Because while Davis may call her during on his middle of the night, it was usually always outside her sleeping times. She answered the call, pressing it against her ear.

“Morning, Kari!” Davis’s cheerful voice came on the other end. “Did you sleep well?”

Kari laughed a little. “Yeah, I slept okay. How are you doing?”

“Awesome!” Davis replied. “I also got some new ideas from the type of ramen that my future franchise will sell, want to hear it?”

“Of course,” Kari replied, suddenly wide awake and it was like it didn’t even matter that she hadn’t slept all that great last night. Davis’s passion was always contagious especially when he was talking about his dream. He had done a lot of short courses and looked around different things, along with Ken, so she always wanted to make sure to encourage that. Food brought people together after all and Davis already had such a natural ability to do that, even without the use of different foods. 

“Well, I was thinking of having different options for different kinds of people,” Davis began, sounding genuinely thoughtful. “I mean, I was talking to Ken about it earlier, but I want my business to be an international franchise. People eat differently, in different amounts so I was thinking of having some of my ramen be extremely heavy, full of nutrition, vegetables, rice, while others could be light with a mixture of flavours but not too much filling, what do you think?”

“I think having something for everyone is amazing idea,” Kari admitted, and she honestly did. Because not only did people eat differently according to culture, but some people did like to eat something more filling because it took more to give them energy. “Have you spoken to Matt about this? T.K. says he knows some of the best takeout places.”

“I mean, I’ve thought about it,” Davis said, confidence faltering slightly, something which caused Kari’s face to fall into a small frown. It took a lot for his confidence to falter. “But T.K.’s a lot easier to talk to than Matt is, I mean we’re friends now but it’s kind of hard to tell what Matt is thinking. I don’t really keep in touch with him as much as I do with the others.”

Somehow, this shouldn’t have come as such a surprise to Kari, but it did. Maybe a part of her had hoped that Matt and Davis had become a lot closer given the fact that they both shared the Crest of Friendship in common between them. Maybe I am a little too optimistic at times. Just because Tai and Davis were rather similar, it did not mean that they would both get along with Matt just as easily. Her lips twitched as she recalled T.K.’s groan of annoyance whenever he talked about their fights before she joined the team. Of course, she had witnessed a few of them herself but seeing them now, it was easy to forget that they weren’t always as close as they were now. Especially given the whole love triangle with Sora as well. 

“I know Matt can be a little hard to get along with at times,” Kari said slowly. “But I know he would be more than happy to help you out if you asked him for advice on this. Do you want me to get Tai to…”? She trailed off as her phone gave a beep. Who could be messaging her at this time? “Davis, hold on a moment.”

“Did you get the message from Izzy too?” Davis asked, suddenly completely distracted from what they had been talking about to one another regarding his ramen restaurant. Had Izzy sent them both a message at the same time?

Kari put the phone on speaker and checked it, her eyes widening. “It’s a group SOS from Izzy. He’s told the original Chosen to check their crests and there’s an emergency Chosen Children meeting right now at Izzy’s house. He’s going to try and get you and the others on Skype so you can participate in the meeting.” It was a good thing it wasn’t too late in New York right now, since 9pm was not too unreasonable but she knew it would be hard for Yolei unless she was up studying again. 

“I’m going to go wash my face, so I look a bit fresher but what do you think is wrong?” Davis asked.

Kari bit her lower lip, not sure if she should share her suspicions. It might make her sound slightly insane and she didn’t want any of her friends thinking that. Davis would never think that. He doesn’t think the way that most people do. That might be true, but most people also didn’t have feelings when something was going on and that feeling turned out to be true. They also didn’t begin bursting with light and heal an entire race of Digimon. Of course, to her relief, T.K. and Sora were both very kind people who had never really brought it up, but she could tell from the looks on their faces that they had been stunned at what was going on.

It had never happened again – those strange powers had never acted up in the real world, but she had felt it then. The feeling she could heal those Numemon, that she had the power to protect them from further harm. 

“Hey Kari, are you ok?” Davis’s voice cut into her thoughts. “You went really quiet. I’m sure Gatomon and the others are fine, you know. They’re really tough and we’ve all been through worse, right?” 

“Yeah, I’m alright,” Kari said softly. “I…just…Davis, if I tell you something, I mean, I know it might sound strange but…” She trailed off, heart clenching into her mouth. When she had first befriended Davis, it was because she couldn’t watch how other people treated him. Something inside her that pulled at her to help but what if this changed his opinion of her? The fact that she had this almost – maybe – non-human power inside of her still, one she didn’t know where it came from. 

“Hey, Kari, listen to me,” Davis said seriously, all light-heartedness gone from his voice. “If Ken is my best friend, you’re my female best friend. We’ve known each other since we were kids and since you defended me back then. Nothing you say could ever make me run away. What is it?”

“I’ve…I’ve felt strange all morning, like something bad was going to happen,” Kari admitted, knowing it sounded weird even in her own mind, but she didn’t know who else to talk to. Tai had his own problems to deal with and she hadn’t had a serious conversation with Yolei in a while. If Gatomon was here, she would be the one to share this kind of emotion with but as she wasn’t here, she needed to tell someone. Her and Davis usually talked every day, video-calling once every two weeks so despite him being in another country, she felt closer to him than she did to some of her friends here. Of course, Tai visited a lot and she spent a lot of time in his apartment, but it wasn’t like he lived here where she could just wake him up and tell him she didn’t feel well like she could before.

Her head was beginning to throb from keeping so much in and if there was one thing that made her hands clam up causing her heart to race, it was the thought of that ocean calling to her again. It had called to her back then because of her attraction to the darkness and she didn’t want this to become another reality that was a part of her life again.

“So, kind of like you felt like something bad was going to happen?” Davis asked. 

“I know it sounds a little crazy but,” Kari began but Davis cut through her.

“Hey, hey, who said anything about it sounding crazy?” Davis said, sounding alarmed. “I mean, I think it’s kind of cool, especially since it’s something to do with the Crests, which means you have a strong connection with Gatomon and the digital world. Like without even being there. You’re not crazy, Kari. I think you just care a whole lot and sometimes, caring a lot can hurt you as well.”

Kari’s eyes watered slightly. “Davis…” Her voice cracked.

“Hey, don’t cry ok? I can tell you’re about to from your voice and I don’t want you to cry while I can’t be there to comfort you,” Davis said, voice growing softer. “I promise, even if you feel bad about things now, we’re going to figure this out.”

“Okay,” Kari said, a lone tear rolling down her cheek, but she wiped it away. “I’ll go find my crest and get ready to head out. Thanks Davis.”

“Eh? For what?” Davis asked, sounding genuinely confused and Kari giggled at this a bit.

“For listening to me,” Kari said simply. Davis didn’t look it, but he could be a good listener – which was obvious from the way he had helped Ken through his trauma.

“Course,” Davis said immediately. “See you soon at the meeting, ok?”

“Yeah, bye Davis,” Kari said, before hanging up. She didn’t know what was going to happen next but that was okay. They had always made it through before so they would definitely make it through now. _We may be apart now, but it’s like Gatomon said back then. We’re the Chosen Children. We’ll always find our way back together._


	2. Within Our Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you for all your support on the first chapter. I have decided to use the term ‘DigiDestined’ as opposed to Chosen Children, because they’re not exactly children anymore. Thank you to Crystal_leris for betareading this chapter. Please continue to read and review! Thank you and enjoy!

**2\. Within Our Heart**

Izzy had been a DigiDestined for a long time, and he liked to think he knew how to gather enough information to be able to guide the others. But right now, he was at a complete loss. He could practically feel the anxiousness radiating off Tai as his best friend clenched a fist, shifting from one side to the other on the bed. His fingers flew across the computer, trying to analyse the Crests with the original digivice but nothing. He was waiting for the others to get here and Mimi promised she’d make time for a video call, as did Davis, Ken and Cody. Yolei, unfortunately wouldn’t be able to make it as there had been no response from her.

“Anything, Izzy?” Tai asked again, for the umpteenth time since he had gotten here.

“The digivice isn’t responding to me,” Izzy admitted. “I was hoping Kari or T.K. would get here so I could see if the D3 responds any better to the Crests of Hope and Light if they’re faded away as well. If not, we need to find a way into the digital world, no matter what I have to do for it.”

Being good with technology, he did know the dirtier tricks he could use to get them into the digital world, but just the thought of that made his stomach churn. He didn’t feel like using his knowledge of this would bring his Crest back to full strength, but he was slowly running out of options. He had tried every normal method to get into the digital world. Getting there is the most important…right? The thought didn’t really feel as certain as he would have liked it to be. 

“You mean…you’re going to try to well, hack your way in?” Tai said, staring at Izzy if he had grown another head, not that he could blame his friend for thinking that. 

“If there’s no other way in, we may have no choice but to use that method to get to our Digimon,” Izzy admitted, staring down at the floor.

“No,” Tai said firmly and stood up, placing his hands on Izzy’s shoulder, forcing him to look up. “Izzy, you’ve always done things the right way, using your brains and if it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have gotten out of some of the worst jams in the digital world. I know you think you might not be able to get us there if you stay honest, but you’re one of the smartest people I know. I know you can find a way, even if you don’t think so right now. You don’t have to use your knowledge to hack into the digital world, you…no, we can find another way.”

“Tai’s right, Izzy,” Another soft voice interrupted before Izzy could even find the words to reply and he looked up to see Kari at the door, before she walked in and sat down.

“I’m sorry, your Mom let me in so I couldn’t help overhearing,” Kari said softly, her own burnt Crest wrapped in several cloths and she was wearing gloves to hold onto it. “I know the condition of the Crests is worrying, but we’re the DigiDestined, right? We can’t lose ourselves otherwise we won’t be able to help the Digimon.”

Izzy knew his friends were right, his heart lightening at the faith they had in him. But he couldn’t let Tentomon down even further than he possibly had by using the wrong methods to find a way into the digital world. It took about an hour before the others, at least most of the original DigiDestined, minus Joe, who rarely had the time arrived there.

“Izzy, have you been able to work out why our Crests have faded away?” Matt asked, posture tense, even as Sora took his hand into her own, biting her lip. However, he pulled his hand away from her, causing her to frown but she didn’t say anything.

Izzy shook her head. “Not yet. But I was hoping through T.K. and Kari’s D-3s, I might be able to get something done. May I?” He held out his hand for the D-3s.

* * *

T.K. immediately handed over his D-3 to Izzy, heart sinking as he thought of the image of Patamon drowning in an ocean of despair. His partner had been one of the most positive Digimon he had ever laid his eyes on so what had changed? What had made his best friend give up hope and not even try to contact him? He knew the gates had been closed but their bond had always been stronger than that. He tried to ignore his own questions to focus on what Izzy was doing.

“While I’m working on this,” Izzy said glancing at them. “Davis, Ken and Cody messaged me back, saying they wanted to be involved on video call in this meeting, since they were concerned when they heard about the crests. Mimi was busy but she’s too worried about Palmon not to come on video call. So, can you guys contact them?”

“I’ll contact Mimi,” Sora said softly, pulling away from Matt momentarily to do so from her phone.

T.K. got out his phone, silently video calling Cody as well.

“I’ve got Davis, Kari, can you contact Ken?” Tai said, making to do so as well. This shouldn’t be happening. 

“Guys,” Davis said immediately when Tai contacted him. There was a slight static but it wasn’t enough to make Davis’s voice sound too unclear even if it did cause some disturbance. “What’s going on? Why did the crests fade away and lose their light? I mean, we were able to get the actual Crests back for Tai’s team and Ken with the Sovereign power, right? Veemon and the others…they’re ok, aren’t they?”

“No,” Izzy said, loudly and clearly before anyone else could as a series of zeroes and ones could be seen on the computer screen. “The digimon are not remotely close to being alright. T.K., Kari, thank you for giving me your D-3s, it has assisted me in discovering information I was unable to find before.”

“Izzy, what’s going on?” Mimi asked. “You’re making us all worried.”

“I can’t be certain of the exact details,” Izzy admitted. “But I will say this much. The Digimon no longer possess the qualities of our individual crests. Us having the physical forms of the crests means nothing because the crest power has always been within us and within the digimon. However, something has happened or has placed them in a situation where they have lost those traits that give them the strength to digivolve and become stronger.”

There was silence in the room and normally, Tai or Davis would find something to say to help everyone think positive but neither of them spoke. T.K. couldn’t blame them – given what Izzy had just said made a dozen scenarios fill inside of his mind, each one worse than the one before. It would take Patamon a lot to lose hope – he had even had hope when all the Digimon were down and Devimon tried to kill T.K., his friend genuinely believed despite the odds being stacked against them that he’d be able to win. He had encouraged Veemon not to give up after stopping him from being crushed under MetalGreymon’s foot, not soon after the threat of being enslaved. Then what could it be now? His head was spinning as he tried to keep track of the conversation going on around him. 

“Izzy, what are we going to do?” Sora asked softly, her grip around her phone tightening slightly. It had been seven years since the digital world needed their help but somehow, she could feel over the past few months that something was wrong. Dismissing it as a gut feeling, she now wished she hadn’t done that. It also wasn’t the only thing to worry about – especially because Matt was withdrawing from her. Okay, so the two of them had not been together long but something was wrong – she could feel it. 

“We have to go,” Izzy said firmly. “We have to find a way into the digital world.”

“But how?” Matt asked, a frown etched onto his features as some frustration seeped into his tone. “I mean, you’ve been trying to open the gate for a while now and it’s not working.”

“It’s okay,” Tai said before Izzy could reply to Matt. “I know Izzy will be able to find us a way into the digital world, so we have to believe in him and let him work ok?” He could see where Matt was coming from, he really could but he also wouldn’t let his other best friend lose sight of himself. That wouldn’t help them, nor would it help Izzy or Tentomon. 

“I’m going to attempt to get a hold of Yolei,” Ken finally spoke up in a soft voice, face slightly pale. “As well as try to take a few days off to come to Japan. It won’t be easy, but this qualifies as an emergency.” He could feel his own heart racing, but he managed to not show that to the others. It was a good thing he was behind a computer screen so Kari wouldn’t be able to see his fists clenching in his lap as he kept his facial expression carefully composed. How could Wormmon lose his kindness? His best friend had been the one to remind him of his own kindness, after all. 

Cody also nodded. “I’m going to apply for special circumstances myself. I want to be there for Armadillomon.”

“Yeah!” Mimi agreed enthusiastically. “Palmon comes before anything and I wouldn’t have even gotten into the media field without her help. So…” Her voice cracked slightly. “If my best friend has forgotten how to be sincere, I want to come back home to remind her.”

“Wait for us, ok Izzy?” Davis added, clenching a fist. “Keep working on it though and we’ll definitely find a way in. Besides, the more of us that go the better right?”

“In this case, there definitely is safety in numbers,” Izzy agreed. “Mostly because this was as much as I could find and this was after, looking into it quite deeply. So, we are unsure of what to expect when we get there.”

Kari had been quiet, taking everything in and from the look on Ken’s face, she could tell he was doing the same. It was a lot to understand and take in, her own eyes stinging with tears as she thought of everything Gatomon had been through before she had met her. She didn’t want her best friend to give into the darkness, not after how much she attempted to remain closer to the light. I won’t let Gatomon fall back into the darkness, no matter what happens or how risky it is.

* * *

Joe had gotten Izzy’s message but to be honest, his Crest fading away had not come as too big of a surprise because he was putting in everything in being a Doctor. That also meant not really answering his friend’s calls or messages, something which made his heart clench inwards but what was he supposed to do? Medicine wasn’t easy and it wasn’t like it allowed him to have a lot of free time. Why was everything so much easier, even studying when Gomamon was here?

Somehow, with his Digital Partner by his side, nothing felt as challenging. Every exam – every assignment, he felt like all he had to do was put in the effort and stay up to date. Gomamon would cheer him on in the background and it would be almost as if he were the one evolving and becoming stronger with his best friend’s enthusiasm. He did wonder sometimes if this was how the Digimon felt when they digivolved due to their strength that they gave him.

He didn’t have long to ponder in his own thoughts because all of a sudden, his computer turned on, a bright light coming out of it. In fact, it was so bright that Joe had to shield his eyes for a moment and when he could move his arm away, his eyes widened as he saw Gomamon sprawled in front of the computer. His body was a mix of mix of red and brown, making it hard to distinguish his actual colour. Joe felt almost as if his heart had stopped for a moment, before he went into work-mode, moving closer to his best friend.

He gave a quick visual check-up to see whether it was safe to move the other but then decided to tend to him first, getting out his first aid box, working through the injuries and deciding to wrap a few bandages around them. It was at least safer to move him now. Leaving Gomamon in his room, he quickly went to get a glass of water, however this wasn’t the best idea because as he was heading back to his room, the sound of a crash came. This caused his feet to move even faster and he hurried forward.

“G-get away from me, don’t take me away please,” Gomamon’s voice sounded quite panicked, breathing heavily even as Joe returned to the room.

“Gomamon,” Joe began but it was as if Gomamon couldn’t even see him in that moment then and there. 

“Please…I’m not as strong as Omnimon or Imperialdramon, please don’t,” Gomamon said and those words cracked at Joe’s heart. He knew humans had panic attacks, but he didn’t know Digimon could have them as well, despite how alike the two species were. His brain wracked at what he could do but then walked over and opened the drawer, taking out his digivice. He had read that physical objects were a good way to bring someone back to their reality, so he gently placed his digivice in front of the obviously panicking Digimon, however what he did not expect was the digivice to give off a soft glow.

“Gomamon,” Joe spoke softly. “I don’t know what happened but you’re safe now. I promise, nothing is going to hurt you here.”

Are you sure about that? A voice nagged in the back of his mind, but Joe pushed it away. No, he couldn’t be sure, he could never be sure about it, but he didn’t let this show especially as Gomamon stopped shaking.

“Joe?” Gomamon asked meekly. “Is it really you?”

Joe smiled gently. “Yeah, of course, it’s me. You’re here, in the real world.”

“Joe,” Gomamon’s voice cracked and he slowly shifted in closer to Joe. Joe, seeing this reached out in return and Gomamon cradled into his arms. His heart wavered as he felt his partner shaking. Gomamon had been one of the most optimistic Digimon he had ever met, often encouraging him when he got too down on himself. Izzy’s message ran through his mind and another question came to mind, one that made his heart sink. Could it honestly be possible that his Crest had not stopped shining because of him but due to whatever was going on in the digital world?

“Gomamon,” Joe began softly. “What happened? How did you get here? Did something bad happen in the digital world?”

Gomamon flinched a bit, looking away and Joe mentally berated himself. Joe, would you get a grip? Your friend is obviously scared right now, don’t toss a dozen questions at him. No matter how old he got, his habit of worrying too much had only increased instead of becoming less like it should have.

“Sorry,” Joe hurried to apologise. “You don’t have to explain anything right now.”

“Joe,” Gomamon said softly. “Is it really important to know why? Can’t I just stay with you and never go back?”

Joe was stumped at this and opened his mouth to speak, but words failed him. Gomamon was the Digimon of Reliability and while he understood wanting to be with him, having experienced those same feelings, the other Digimon weren’t here, at least as far as he knew. 

Still, he wasn’t going to get any answers like this. He cradled his friend closer, heart sinking into his stomach even worse at whatever had happened, texting the group.

Guys, Gomamon is here with me at my house. I just wanted to know if your Digimon are with you as well. Regards, Joe. PS: He’s really different from what we all remember.

“Do you want something to eat, Gomamon?” Joe asked, slowly pulling away and smiling at his friend. “I mean, you seem really tired and it might help you sleep better.”

“I just wanna sleep,” Gomamon admitted honestly, eyes already closing as he said this. “Joe, don’t abandon me like Gennai and the digital world did.” Those were the last words which the little Digimon uttered out before passing out to sleep. 

Joe gently stroked Gomamon’s head, more questions in his head than answers but he knew one thing for sure. Gomamon was definitely worth setting his Medical school duties aside to find out what was going on. That was the only thing he knew for sure. 


End file.
